Poultry roost



Dec. 30, 1930. c. H. MOOMAW 1,785,443

POULTRY RoOsT Filed Dec. 20, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Jjz/OL a a? I Dec. 30, 1930. C MOOMAW 1,786,443

POULTRY ROOST Filed Dec 20, 1927 2 sheets-sheet 2 Y 0.15. l4 l4 INVEN'TOR G. fl/floomaw ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 30, 1930 PATENT" OFFICE CURTIS H. MOOMAW, OF SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI POULTRY BOOST Application filed December 20, 1927. Serial No. 241,370.

This invention relates to improvements in poultry roosts generally, and has for its principal object to provide for a type of the same which embodies structural features giving to it such advantages as that of being easily and readily assembled and installed in an operative position and collapsed into compact form to give clearance about the same for installation, for purposes of inspection'and maintenance; durable and sanitary in use; proof against the lodgement on the roost proper of mites or other kindred vermin; and ease in cleaning and removing droppings or other soil accumulations from the structure without an undue expenditure of labor and time.

With the foregoing and other equally important objects and advantages in view, the invention resides in the certain new and useful combination, construction and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described, set forth in the appended claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a practical embodiment of the invention as it appears when installed and expanded to full operative posit-ion within a poultry house, one wall of the latter being shown in horizontal section Figure 2 is a fragmentary vertical transverse section taken on the line 22 of Figure 1, I

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary longitudinal sectional detail of a pair of adjacent roost sections as they appear when collapsed into position for cleaning. I

Figure 4 is a fragmentary side elevation of one of the hinged roller supports employed for connecting the adjacent roost sections together,

Figure 5 is a side elevation of the roostas it appears when assembled, installed and expanded to operative position, and

Figure 6 is a vertical longitudlnal section thereof.

Referring to the drawings, wherein s1m1- lar characters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the several views thereof, the improved poultry roost, as

shown therein, comprises a pair of members or rails 10, which are preferably formed of suitable equal lengths of angle iron. These members or rails 10 are supported in hori zontal position, one parallel to the other and at a desired height above the floor or ground level, on the upper ends of standards or posts 11, which are preferably formed of suitable lengths of tubular metal stock. With the rails 10 properly positioned on the posts 11, the horizontally disposed flange portions thereof are directed one towards the other, so that their vertical flange portions are available for use as guides to control the extending and collapsing movements of a plurality of roost sections to be assembled and supported in position on the horizontal flange portions.

Each of the roost sections aforesaid comprises a pair of oppositely disposed plates 12 from which rise standards or posts 13. On the upper ends of these posts 13, of each roost section, is supported a transversely extending roost member or bar 1 1. These plates 12 are spaced apart in a manner to overlie the horizontal flange portions of the supporting members or rails 10. Each of the said plates 12 has its opposite ends bent to cylindrical'form to provide hinge eyes 15, in which are engaged the pintles 16 of complemental hin 'e members 17 secured in proper position on the under sides of oppositely arranged drop board sections 18. ,The adjacent edge portions of the drop board sections 18 are cut away, as at 19, at their opposite ends to effect a close fit of the same with respect to the plates 12, when the drop boards are swung on the pintles 16 to horizontal position, in which position the said adjacent edges will closely abut one against the other, or sub- 'stantially so.

Similarly, the adjacent edges of the drop board sections 18 of the several loose sections are to be connected together for relative hinging movements corresponding to the horizontal movements of the same with respect to the plates 12. This is to be accomplished through the medium of the hinged plates 20, which have their opposite ends formed to provide the hinge eyes 21 engaged by the pintles 22 of the eomplemental hinge members 23, also secured in position on the under sides of the drop board sections 18. These hinge members 23 are secured to the drop board sections 18 in line with the adjacent similar hinge sections 17. The opposite corners of the complemental of the edge portions of the drop board sections 18 of adjacent loose sections are also cut away, as at 24, to closely fit the adj acent edge portions of the hinge plates 20, when the drop board sections 18 are swung to their horizontal positions. Secured on the under sides of'each of the horizontal plates 20 are angle members or brackets 25, to the depending portions of which are journaled rollers 26 arranged in rolling contact with the horizontal flange portions of the main supporting rails 10.

With the roost as thus constructed and assembled, the same is to be preferably installed in position within a poultry house, with one end of the trackway formed by the parallel rails 10 abutting one wall a of a poultry house, to which wall a the free edge portion of the inner drop board sections 18 (Figures 1, 5 and 6) of the innermost the roost sections is detachably connected by means of hook members or the like 27. WVith this innermost roost section attached to the wall a, the several roost sections may be collapsed or expanded along the main supporting rails 10 by grasping the leading drop board section 18" of the forward or outer of the roost sections, and pushing the roost sections toward one another and in the direction of the wall a on the one hand, or pulling the same apart in the opposite direction on the other hand. In expanded position, the several drop board sections 18, 18" and 18" are disposed in a horizontal plane for substantially the full length of the main supporting rails 10, and lie in close edge to edge relation, whereby droppings or other soil accumulations are prevented from falling between the rails 10 to the floor or ground surface of the poultry house. Also in full extended position, the roost members or bars 1 are spaced equi-distantly apart, and in a manner to prevent interference between the rows of fowls perched upon the same.

To eitect the cleaning ofif of the drop board sections 18, 18 and 18, the several loose sections will be collapsed toward the wall a, after the manner as shown in Figure 6, when the said drop board sections will assume upwardly inclined positions by reason of the interconnecting hinge members aforesaid. In these positions, the lowermost of the edges of the adjacent drop board sections will be spaced apart at a distance determined by the intermediate length of the hinged plates 20 between the eye portions 21 thereof, and, in any case, this distance will be sufiicient to allow for the droppings and other soil accumulations to be discharged downwardly through the spaces so provided. Any suit able tool or implement may be employed to scrape and clean the upper surfaces of the drop board sections 18, 18 and 18 of any and all adhering droppings or other soil accumulations thereon.

To prevent the discharge of droppings or other soil from the drop board sections 18, 18' and 18 downwardly through the main supporting rails 10, and onto the floor or ground surface of the poultry house, the invention contemplates the use of a receptacle 28, which is provided with supporting hooks 29 by means of which it may be successively suspended from the rails 10 in position beneath the opening or space betweenadjacent drop board sections to catch such droppings or soil. Thesupporting hooks 29 of the receptacle are preferably outturned from the inner sides of the oppositely disposed rails 10, so that the angular'portions engaged with the latter may be slid along the inner sides of the upper faces of the horizontal flange portions of the rails without in any way inter fering with the roost sections. hen not in use, the receptacle 28 may be left suspended from the rails 10 at any point thereon or the forward cuts of the same, if desired, somewhat as is shown in F 'ure 5. By on gaging the angular portions of the hooks 29 on the horizontal. flanges of th rails 10, ust in rear of the front rollers :46 of the front or leading roost and drop board sections, as the latter are successively or progressively moved rearwardly to folded dumping positions, the receptacle 28 will be automatically moved into position to catch and retain the droppings and other soil from the vertically folded drop board sections.

The invention also contemplates the provision of a tier of rows or nests 30, which are preferably of a unitary construction to be suspended from the main supporting rails 10 by means of inturned hook members or the like 31, substantially as is shown in Figure 1. Also cups 32 to receive an insecticide may be mounted in position on the standards or posts 13 below the roost members or bars 14, so that, in the event of mites or the like getting onto the drop board sections 18, they will be prevented from travelii'ig upwardly of the standards or posts 13 to the roost members or bars 14.

\Vithout further description, it thought that the features and advantages of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and it will of course be understood that changes in the form, proportion and minor details of constructions may be resorted to, without departing from the spirit of the invention or its scopeas claimed.

Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed is 1. A poultry roost comprising an elongated support, drop board sections arranged above said support and normally disposed in close edge to edge relation, means interconnecting the adjacent side edges of all of said sections whereby the same will be adapted to be moved in successive pairs from one end of said support to oppositely inclined positions and in a manner that the adjacent side edges of each pair will be spaced apart for the discharge of droppings and other soil accumulations thereon downwardly of the spaces so provided, and roost bars disposed in spaced relation above said drop board sections.

2. A poultry roost comprising an elongated support, drop board sections arranged above said support and normally disposed in close edge to edge relation, hinge members connecting the adjacent edges of pairs of said drop board sections together, posts rising from intermediate portions or" alternately disposed hinge members, said drop board sections being movable to vertically inclined positions to space their adjacent edges apart for the discharge of droppings and other soil accumulations thereon downwardly of the spaces so provided, and roost bars secured on the upper ends of said posts.

3. A poultry roost comprising an elongated trackway, drop board sections arranged above said trackway and normally disposed in edge to edge relation, hinge members connecting the adjacent edges of said drop board sections together, rollers carried by certain of the said hinge members and engaging the trackway to support the drop board sections in either expanded or collapsed positions thereon, said drop board sections being movable to vertically inclined positions to space their adjacent edges apart for the discharge of droppings and other soil accumulations thereon downwardly of the spaces so provided, posts rising from the other of said hinge members, and roost bars carried at the upper ends of said posts.

4. A poultry roost comprising a horizontally elevated trackway, drop board sectionsarranged above said trackway and normally disposed in close edge to edge relation, hinge members connecting the adjacent edges of said drop board sections together, rollers carried by alternately disposed hinge members and engaging the trackway to support the drop board sections in either expanded or collapsed positions thereon, said drop board sections being movable to vertically inclined positions to space their adjacent edges apart for the discharge of droppings and other soil accumulations thereon downwardly of the spaces so provided, posts rising from intermediate portions of the other of said hinge members, and roost bars carried at the upper ends of said posts.

5. A poultry roost comprising a trackway, drop board sections arranged above said trackway and normally disposed in close edge to edge relation, hinge members connecting the adjacent edges of said drop board sections together, rollers carried by alternately disposed hinge members and engaging the trackway to support the drop board sections in either expanded or collapsed positions thereon, said drop board sections being movable to vertically inclined positions to space their adjacent edges apart for the discharge of droppings and other soil accumulations thereon downwardly of the spaces so provided, posts rising from the intermediate portions of the other of said hinge members, roost bars carried at the upper ends of said posts, and a receptacle depending from said trackway and adapted to be placed in positions beneath the spaces between the drop board sections to catch the droppings and other soil accumulations discharged downwardly through the said spaces.

6. In a poultry roost, an elongated support, a plurality of drop board sections disposed on said support in normally edge to edge relation, hinged connections coupled to the adjacent edges of said sections whereby the latter are adapted to be moved to oppositely inclined positions and in a manner to space their adjacent edges apart for the discharge of droppings and other soil accumulations thereon downwardly of the spaces so provided, and means for fixedly hinging the end sections at the inner end of said support whereby all of said sections will remain in the normal order of their arrangement during the hinging movements thereof.

7. In a poultry roost, an elongated support, a plurality of drop board sections disposed on said support in normally edge to edge relation, hinged connections coupled to the adjacent edges of said sections whereby the latter are adapted to be moved to oppositely inclined positions and in a manner to space their adjacent edges apart for the discharge of droppings and other soil accumulations thereon downwardly of the spaces so provided, and means for fixedly hinging the end sections at the inner end of said support whereby all of said sections will remain in the normal order of their arrangement during the hinging movements thereof, said sections being adapted to be moved from and to their normally disposed positions on said support by movements imparted to the unsecured endsection at the outer end of said support.

Signed at Springfield, in the county of Greene and State of Missouri, this 15th day of December, A. D. nineteen hundred and twenty-seven.

CURTIS H. MOOMAW. 

